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Legend of the River King is a strange hybrid of a fishing simulation and a role-playing game. Following the story of a boy who must catch the mystical Guardian Fish, in order to use its mystical healing abilities to cure his terminally ill sister, it's kind of like a more complicated version of the fishing portions of games like Animal Crossing and Harvest Moon, crossed with the random battles and chatting of a Pokemon game, although it's definitely one for the older crowd.
For starters, there's a fair amount of reading required - being an old GameBoy Colour game from 1999, there's no voice overs at all, and many of the things people tell you are essential to your quest. For example, one man in the starting village offers you a raft in exchange for you catching him a rainbow trout - without this raft, there's no way you're getting out of the initial village, so your child will need to take time to read things carefully.
Actually catching a fish is easier said than done, though. Once you've made sure you've got the right sized hook and some decent bait on your rod, you need to find a good spot to cast out. Then it's a matter of waiting for one of the little yellow fish silhouettes to bite - once you've snagged one, your float will turn yellow, and you'll hear one long beep. Pressing the button at this point switches the view to underwater where you'll need to tug your fish to the surface, waiting for him to tire out before you start yanking back.
Legend of the River King isn't an especially long game, but as a download for £4.49 from the Nintendo eShop, you can't really go too far wrong - assuming you can fathom the fishing mechanics, anyway.
Legend of the River King has nothing untoward whatsoever - it's a simple tale of a boy who needs to catch a magical fish to cure his sister's illness. Perhaps the only potentially dodgy thing are the battles with all manner of creepy crawlies you'll fight on your journey, although you see no blood, guts or gore, nor any physical contact at all.
Age Ratings
Format Reviewed: Nintendo 3DS
